Valuing the Soul. A Blueprint for EternityAir Date: May. 13, 2025

Beth Barlet (00:01)
Have you ever paused to consider the worth of your soul? Today, I discuss the lasting impact of our choices and the eternal significance of our spiritual journey. Let’s get to it. Salty begins right now.

Beth Barlet (00:35)
Welcome to Salted, where I help you uncover the transformative power to know and love Jesus in His fullness and stir up revival within your heart. Join me, Beth Barlett, as I come alongside you every week on the narrow path that draws us into a deeper relationship with Jesus. Get ready to be encouraged, empowered, ignited and equipped as we pursue authentic discipleship to influence the world for the Kingdom of God.

Beth Barlet (01:04)
Hey everyone, welcome to the newest episode of the Salted Podcast. As always, I pray that you guys are having an awesome week and that if you’re not having a great week, that this episode would just stir your heart to remember the goodness and love and awesomeness of our Lord God and his son, Jesus Christ.

And I pray today that the Lord would just move in your heart to do whatever he needs to do. I really want to dive into an important topic as followers of Jesus that we need to continually renew our minds upon. And that is focusing on the eternal and setting our hearts and minds on heaven and continually reminding ourselves of the gospel.

and what it truly means to us and what it truly bought for us. And then by remembering the eternal, which we’ll get into our next episode, how then we prioritize it and how it affects the choices we make, the decisions we make, the relationships we have, and you know, just every part of how it affects every part of our life to put eternity first.

over things of this world. And so, you know, welcome if this is your first time joining us today. I am so grateful that you’re here to be part of our community. And I pray that the Holy Spirit would just give you whatever you need to take with you for the rest of the week.

So my question I want to ask everyone though is, are you living your life in light of eternity? And if the answer is yes, what does it look like? And as we dive into this question, I really want to talk about the eternal realities that we sometimes even shy away from and how this can affect our eternal priorities and how we not only value our souls, but how we truly live for God.

And you know, as Christians, we all have heard that we need to keep an eternal perspective and prioritize God’s kingdom realm as followers of Jesus. But what does this truly mean? Before I really get started, I want to address in essence just how fast time flies while we are here on earth. And the small amount of time that we live on earth is truly nothing compared to the incomprehensible thought of eternity.

forever and you know each year I feel as the new year comes around that each year goes faster and faster and you know I always ask the question how is this year almost over already and wow this year was the fastest year I’ve lived through yet like it gets faster and faster and you know I can’t believe that it’s been almost now 20 years that I’ve been with my husband

Praise the Lord. I’m so thankful. my first born now is already three years old. My second born is now already six months old and I recently just turned 40. So, life slowed down. Be still my heart. All the good things. yes, I’m 40. I still feel like I’m 20. but anyway, I don’t think we truly come to terms speaking about time with death.

you know, until we, I really think get closer and closer to quote unquote the end of life. And you know, just recently my mom was talking about my son turning 16 and how she sadly won’t probably be here when he does just based on her age. And you know, my husband and I were just discussing just what my mom had said and what truly will go through our heads when we’re in our late seventies, early eighties. then that

season of life, like will our eyes be that much more fixed on eternity with Jesus and will our eyes and hearts be that much more in line with what eternity holds and will we have come to term with the end of this life to prepare for the next?

You know, I still think in our 40s, because I’m in my 40s, but even 20s and 30s, we still feel like we’re invincible. You know, like we’ll be here on earth forever. And although we know we’re gonna die, I don’t think we really truly accept that we’re gonna die. It’s this weird phenomenon, which I know you guys understand,

But we tend to live as if we have all the time in the world. And sometimes because of that, because we take for granted, you know, every breath that we walk and forget that any day can be our last day, that sometimes we don’t steward or invest our days as we need to for eternity. When in essence, as I just previously said, that any day could be our last day here on earth. But

In the craziness of life, one thing is for certain that we all need to remember is that we will all one day physically die. And the Bible reminds us that our lives are but a fleeting breath and that we are to live each day as it is our last, numbering our days, not wasting even one because the days are evil and that there is so much work to be done as citizens of heaven, as ambassadors and advocates for Christ who are called

to spread the gospel, tell everyone about Jesus, reflect his heart, raise disciples, bring up our children for the Lord, et cetera, et before we pass. We have been called and chosen for such a time as this, not only to be in relationship with the Lord and to love the Lord, but to serve the Lord and co-labor with him to influence for his kingdom and to represent him so that others may be able to walk on the fullness of life.

So that others may be able to walk in the fullness of life in which he offers through a life laid down, sacrificed, fully given to him in 100 % utmost faith. You know, just the other day the Lord gave me a renewed revelation, leaving me full of joy that one day that I will see him in heaven. And as Christians we believe in the eternal reality that there is life beyond death and though our physical bodies will die, our souls will live beyond.

We believe that Earth is not our home and that we are peculiar people, strangers on this Earth, citizens of Heaven, Those of another supernatural kingdom through our faith in Jesus Christ, believing that he was crucified, died, buried…

but then rose from the dead for the forgiveness of our sins. And that we are not only to prepare ourselves while here on earth for His coming, but to also groan deeply for the eternal as we anticipate Jesus’ return when He establishes His forever kingdom of paradise on earth. And our hope is that one day there will be no more pain, no more death, no more sickness and suffering, and that we will be united with our bridegroom face to face.

and that we are in the end times and that Jesus is coming back very soon and we need to change the way that we live our lives and what we make a priority in our heart to prepare the way and not only in our hearts but to prepare those around us for his judgment. And everyone has their idea when Jesus is coming back but the scripture tells us that no one will know the time and we need to be prepared as if it is tomorrow.

not allowing any mocking, scoffing spirits to allow us to derail us or distract us that it will be for another how many years, but that we need to be like those virgins in Matthew 24 and to keep our oil lamps full and lit in anticipation that our bridegroom and king can come at any day. And we must live for the same sense of urgency that they lived, making the most of our days and stewarding the giftings that we’ve been given.

And in the meantime, as we await these realities, we are to keep our eyes set upon the joy before us, seeking first the kingdom of God. Fixing our eyes not on what is seen but unseen, not what is temporary but eternal. And fight the good fight of faith, constantly taking hold of what awaits us, looking forward, looking toward heaven, toward what awaits us for eternity, so that we then can align our lifestyles.

in godliness and righteousness and holiness because it not only benefits us now but forever. And we not only believe that life eternity is life after death but that Jesus in the gospel of John also teaches us that eternal life is here and now with an intimate relationship with God through his son Jesus Christ. And when we are born again and give our whole lives to Christ, scripture tells us that actually God stamps eternity upon

focusing our lives forever with Jesus and his presence cultivates within us a life of peace, hope and joy. a healthy eternal perspective not only grows our resilience during hard times on this earth, it helps give us renewed perspective, but it also cultivates gratitude and breeds purpose in our lives. Jesus even said, I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.

and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this? John 11 25.

Focusing, remembering that we all will live forever and that one day we will sit on the judgment seat before Christ is where we find wisdom.

However, we in faith must embrace the reality and truth that we can either walk the narrow hard path that leads to eternal life and end up forever in paradise through our faith in Jesus, believing in faith that He is the Son of God who died and rose again three days later. Or we can walk the wide and broad path that everyone finds to ultimate destruction, forever separated from Him.

Perishing in eternal hell forever.

We must believe that the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels and that he will reward each person according to what they’ve done. Now, I want to pause here because to be honest, we as Christians, myself sometimes included, only want to talk about half of these truths. No one likes to talk about hell and the seriousness of our sin. It at times feels awkward and sometimes embarrassing.

And we as Christians admit that we feel uncomfortable about talking about it to others. We shy away from it, not wanting to offend those who don’t know Jesus, thinking will hurt their feelings quote unquote, or that we have to defend that quote unquote horrible reality that may somehow deter them away from God. But God doesn’t need protection. We need to speak about who God fully is, that he’s not only a loving, merciful, gracious God, but that he’s a holy and righteous

and just God who one day will obliterate all evil.

I realize that one of my weaknesses that I have is that I don’t so much have a fear of man and speaking the truth, but that I many times have a fear of offending others who don’t share my beliefs. A fear of hurting their feelings because they don’t share what I share or that I feel like that I’m putting them down because I’m telling them about my crazy zealousness.

But I think that many times that that’s some many times what holds me back from speaking on the serious things of hell and sin because again, I don’t want to offend them because they don’t believe what I believe, which is obviously another another bit of warfare or the spirit of fear or satan trying to prevent me from speaking truth to those who need to hear it. But it is no coincidence that

there’s so much spiritual pushback about speaking on this topic. Especially when it’s Satan’s biggest scheme to trick and deceive people into believing that there is no hell and that he doesn’t exist.

but also because he knows that it’s the eternal realities of eternal destruction because of the seriousness of sin and the perfect holiness and justice of God that help us to see the depth of God’s grace, mercy, and love freely given through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ in which all must be saved. And I would say that even compiling this episode, had so much warfare and difficulty putting it together.

so much so that I even thought of wanting to give up and throw it all away and quit. It took me over two months to put my thoughts together. Every time I try to work on this episode, there was such a hindrance and I needed such a breakthrough until finally after much prayer, the Lord gave me revelation.

And I talk about this because there is a seriousness of sin that we tend to brush off and

push underneath the rug.

And you know, I love the verse in Mark 9 where Jesus explains the seriousness of sin by proclaiming that one should have a millstone tied around his head and thrown into the bottom of the sea and drown, rather than lead one of his children into sin. And then later it tells his followers that it’s better to cut their eyes off or their hands, again, a horrible thought if you really think about it, than allow oneself to fall into the harsh reality of eternal hell. I mean,

Just think about the horrible thought of someone tying a large, large rock around your neck and sinking you to the bottom of a lake somewhere, or cutting out one of your eyes or hands, and then Jesus saying that there is something a thousand times worse than that for the consequence of sin. Wow. Just think. Pause for a moment. know, sin leads to death, the Bible says,

And sometimes we underestimate the seriousness of our sin and the effects it has on our eternity. And it is such a weighty warning because Jesus wants us to understand how serious sin is to God our Father because of how perfectly holy and just He is and to allow us to understand the dire need for the gospel.

But also in light of these realities, He exhorts us to live our lives holy and a pleasing sacrifice, living sacrifice, righteous and pure as an offering those who walk in selfless, unconditional love.

And you know,

We all have a tendency to make light of our sin, but it’s imperative that we hate sin as God hates sin and develop a deep understanding of the gravity and weight of it and its consequences, but not only that, but also how much it hurts God’s heart.

But as a reminder, the Bible teaches us that the wages of sin is death, Romans 6-23, and that sin is serious offense and rebellion against God, resulting in a separation from Him now and forever without the gift of grace freely given through Jesus Christ. God has zero tolerance for sin. And sin is not also just an offense to God, but also harmful to ourselves and those around us.

There are so many today, even Christians, who need to once again return to this warning as many believe that a quote unquote loving God would overlook our little sins or refuse to believe that a quote unquote loving God would send millions of people to hell.

But the truth is that sin is sin, big or small, and has dire consequences, and that Jesus says, am the way, the truth, and the life, and only through me can anyone come to the Father. However, to truly understand this, we must understand as fathers of Jesus that living in light of eternity is truly understanding and knowing the fullness of who God truly is and all of His awesome characteristics in which He’s revealed to us through His Word.

not just the ones we want to cherry pick and choose.

Though God loves us, His holiness is such that He cannot tolerate evil. God’s word even says, your eyes are too pure to look on evil, you cannot tolerate wrong. And He is not only a God of mercy and compassion, but a just and righteous God who does not ignore our sin and hates evil. There are so many people today who have created their own image of God and who are seeking to pick and choose the attributes that fit their sinful lifestyle.

so they can validate their sin and live in a way in which they do not have to fear the consequences of sin or be judged by their Creator. Approaching God has become lackluster, casual, without giving Him the respect or reverence in which He commands and deserves. We cannot embrace His goodness without also remembering fully His greatness, which in turn grows our reverence and awe toward Him and cultivates within us a deep fear of God, which Scripture teaches us is the beginning of all wisdom.

We all one day will sit on the judgment seat of Christ and face a holy God to be judged for everything we ever said or did, but also the state of our hearts that we must give account. A day when God will have his perfect judgment and all wrongs and evil will be purged from this earth.

and we are not to be deceived or mocked, but that we must all remember that we will all reap what we sow both now and for all eternity.

There are many who believe the fear of God and His judgment are for those in the past in the Old Testament and not for today. When in reality, it was Jesus who talked about hell the most within the gospels as a place of eternal punishment, judgment, torment, darkness without return.

describing it as place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, a place where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. He refers to it as a place where the fire never goes out, a place of torment, A place that exists because we are all guilty and all fall short of the glory of God, all deserving eternal judgment because of our sin.

and to remember that judgment on the last day will start in the house of God. It must be stressed that contrary to popular belief, it’s not only for those who are really quote unquote bad, but our default destination, and that these realities are truth, not just merely a suggestion, so that we respond appropriately to his warning and take heed, to warn us personally to repent of sin and abandon it fully and live a life of righteousness with urgency.

and so that we make choices and prioritize the gospel first in our lives, understanding that the spiritual is more important than the physical and that we can leave this earth any day. But to live in light of eternity is also embracing the truth that not only is sin serious, but that I am a sinner and am in need of saving. It is realizing that I am not judged as a good person based on the standard and culture of this world, but by the high and holy standard of God.

and that without Jesus my heart, actions, and words are wicked, I am broken and deserve death, as we all fall short of the glory of God. And many of us tend to compare ourselves to others and to the degree of which our peers are sinning, instead of inwardly self-examining our own hearts through the standards and laws of our perfect and holy just God. Jesus tells us that those who are forgiven much love much, and the seriousness of our sin brings me to a place of humility and gratitude

that realizes my incessant need for a Savior and His utmost love for me. It’s a starting point for our love to grow for God and others as Christ’s love for me compels us to love others. And as our love grows for Him and we understand our awaited destinies, we also obey His commands.

We have to often revisit the hopeless state humanity finds itself in outside of God’s direct intervention. Humanity chose to willfully sin against the Holy God and left a huge gulf between us. But God gives us a hopeful promise. It is Jesus who offers a solution to the sin problem and can directly affect your life today and give you hope for a future in Him for all eternity in Christ. In Christ,

There is hope for you and me through the restoration of God a man. In Christ, there is hope for freedom from sin. And God loves us so much, he doesn’t just want us to remain in our sin, to be forgiven and set free from its power. Yes, God will one day judge all in his perfect righteousness, but that is why he sent his one and only son to be our savior, to take the punishment of our sins so that we would be given his perfect righteousness for all eternity.

Our Savior took our sin upon Himself as He died in our place. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. And the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Now sadly, there has been such a shift in the church where many pastors and preachers are actually shying away from God’s word and the gravity of sin. And as the Bible warns us, they speak solely to tickle the ears of their parishioners, leading them further away from Christ, keeping them on the wide, broad path that leads to destruction. Embracing a feel-good Christianity diluting the gospel of Jesus.

They speak about mercy and love and grace, but fail to talk about the cost of discipleship, God’s desire for holiness, righteousness, justice, and impending judgment. And they not only acknowledge their sin, but they affirm their sin, they glorify their sin, and because of the fear of man over the fear of God, turn a blind eye and allow them to continue in their sin because of their fear of offense. When in reality, they are leading them further away from Jesus,

preventing them from seeing their deep need to be saved from their sin through Him as their Lord and Savior. We as disciples are to love and accept everyone into the church as Jesus did, but we are not to affirm and accept them staying in their sinful lifestyles. It is the farthest thing from love.

And we must rise above their temporary feelings and comfort to instead prioritize the state of their souls forever. I mean, if Jesus came to seek and save the lost,

and he was a physician to those who were sick, then we must stop telling people that they aren’t sick. Because why then would they go to a physician to be healed? The issue is that when the Western Church is diluting these eternal realities, the expectation to make eternity a priority has fallen short. The diluted gospel being preached takes away the seriousness of sin and the need for a savior. It pushes under the rug the fact that we are rebellious people

against God and have broken his holy and perfect law, believing instead the cultural, humanistic laws and lie that we are all good people, according to the world and that my false sense of goodness will get me into heaven. That I just need to raise my hand on Sunday and ask Jesus into my heart because it feels good, without needing to know him as my Savior and Lord and that he is my only cure to my brokenness and sin. My healer, my deliverer, my redeemer and the

only truth way in life to having peace with our Creator.

while also putting a negative connotation on holiness versus speaking the truth that with holiness we are able to come closer and more intimate with God and live a safe and secure, blessed life.

but we must also take responsibility on our own. You know, I know truth.

I know God’s word. I seek to follow him completely, wholeheartedly, and be led fully by his Spirit. I’ve experienced the tangible power and presence of God and the reality of his love. But if this is all true, why is it that I still myself slack in ministering to the ones close to me in which I love that don’t believe fully in these eternal realities or believe things that are, have truths?

Why am I not speaking more to them in truth and more about God’s word so they do not end up forever in hell for all eternity? Why am I not speaking more truth to those who believe that they are good people and subconsciously believe they aren’t in need of a savior because of their good works and church attendance? Why am I not ministering more to those who believe that there are more ways than one to heaven? Those who resonate as Christians but have no conviction to submit to his commands?

his convictions, his will, and choose to live according to the cultural standards of this world. Deceived in believing sin is justified in the name of love. Why am I not loving more and reaching out more to those I know who just don’t even believe in sin, that there is no eternal judgment, or believe that there is a spiritual realm fighting over their soul and an enemy who wants to keep them out of heaven? Dear Sister,

Living in light of eternity is the foundation of our worship, our evangelism, our calling, the overflow of the fruit, the spirit and our selfless love. It is what compels us to sacrifice for the cause of Christ. It’s what helps us to live lives that apart from those of this world, helps us to turn away from sin, is the eternal perspective that gives us hope in hard circumstances, peace and joy and encourages us that he is using everything for my eternal good, for his glory.

as he conforms me into the image of his son and prepares me for his return and judgment. It’s what reflects whether or not we value our soul. You know, whether you have been walking with the Lord for a long time or have been in church your whole life, my question to you today is, if you were to die today, do you know 100 % that you would be in heaven and why if not?

Today is your opportunity to believe the gospel and understand the seriousness of sin and that God loves you so much that He wants you to be with Him forever in heaven. But you must believe in faith that Jesus is the Son of God who died for your sin, who took the punishment that He didn’t deserve for your sin, so you would live the life you don’t deserve amidst His undeserved favor.

That you are a sinner who has broken God’s law and that you would repent and turn from your life of sin and your life in which you’ve rebelled against God believing truth apart from his word and that he would come into your heart so you would be born again, filled with his spirit.

his desires, his power without any question that you would be with him for all eternity and that you would not only receive him as your savior but that you would surrender your whole life to him wholeheartedly as your lord and that you would give your all to him to not only love him and worship him but to live wholeheartedly for his glory

If you know where you will go when you die this week, I encourage you to get with the Lord and ask Him where you have fallen short or have been apathetic to the eternal destiny of others and to once again give you a fire to seek and save those lost around you. But also to self-examine where in your heart you have made light of your sin.

have avoided to talk about hell to those who need to know truth or have taken for granted the free gift of the gospel and need to once again awaken your heart in preparation for Christ’s return in judgment. My friend, time is of the essence. At any moment we could be standing before a holy and righteous God. To live as Christ, to die as gain.

Who is it that needs to hear the good news of the gospel? Who close to you isn’t guaranteed tomorrow that needs to know the love of Jesus and the truth of eternity? Is eternity a priority in your heart? I pray you guys were blessed. I’m excited for next week where we dive into what it means to live with eternity as our priority.

and I can’t wait to be with you next time. Talk to you soon. Have an awesome week.

Beth Barlet (30:03)
I pray this episode has blessed you today. I appreciate our time together and I hope our conversation has deepened your faith. Don’t forget to check out today’s show notes for episode links and additional information. Be sure to share this podcast with a friend, review it, and hit subscribe so you don’t miss one episode. Go to my website www.thesaltedpodcast.com and subscribe to my newsletter to be part of our Salted community. Remember,

Being salted takes intentionality. See you here next time.